


A friend thing

by imirel



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Axton please, F/M, Maya tries to be friendly, UST
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-05-31
Packaged: 2018-11-07 06:09:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11052927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imirel/pseuds/imirel
Summary: Axton is feeling pissed off and Maya tries to comfort him.





	A friend thing

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for any mistakes - I'm not a native English speaker ;)

“Two thousands and fifty, big guy.”

“What?” Axton startled, turning his head towards the way the voice came. It was Maya, sitting at the table and looking at him with a tiny foxy smirk.

“Exact amount of bucks you’ve already feed to this needy maw,” she replied, nodding to the gambling machine — old and sticky, covered with dozens of dried drops of questionable origin.

“Seems like someone got an extra money to spend that dimwit. Had a single ride into Three Horns, dontcha?”

“You’re always so watchful, honey,” Axton grumbled pulling the lever again. “Shit!”

Losing one more turn, he gave machine a heavy fist with low “arrrgh” noise. Innocent mech — of course it was innocent as distinct from the person who pulled its trigger — gave a desperate squick, and a small fire grenade rolled out of the special — made just for cases like that — opening, making Axton try a mighty jump away.

“It’s not really so explosive, sugar,” Moxxi laughed behind her counter, “just never do this again, okay? Treat her like a gentleman and maybe some day you’ll get lucky.”

“Right”, Axton muttered and made a step back to the machine.

“Two thousands and two hundreds and eighty five,” Maya said. Axton gave her a gloomy look and returned to his gambling duties.

“So what is the occasion?” Maya asked with an interest, “cause it looks like we all don’t really know where to get money from these crappy wastes, but you’re the one who keeps a fairytale secret”.

“Kinda,” Axton mumbled, “ya all just need to be not that choosy. I’ve helped sir Hammerlock in his mere hunting affairs while all of you said the old man to fuck off. But now ya can see. Few sleepy bullymongs to be killed and me as a winner. So if you want me to pay for your dinner, sweety, you may just ask politely. And I will think about it, promise.”

“You’d better do this, sugar,” Moxxi said with a grin, “cause it seems like tomorrow you will be totally out of your today’s credit. And… if you have something, m-m… heavy on your mind, it’s always better to have a drink or two than sparing all of the money you’ve earned to this soulless piece of junk.”

“I’m not…” Axton started but Moxxi graveled him.

“Yes you are, sugar. Better ya sit down at your pretty counterparts’ table and have some beer and maybe even a friendly catch-up. I will not disturb, I promise”.

Axton exhaled and did what Moxxi told him to. Maya was almost finishing her beer when Moxxi put two new cool and sweaty bottles before them and then vanished over the service door.

“So… how was the hunt?” Maya asked a bit tensely when awkward silence had lied between them.

“The hunt, yeah… Good”, Axton swallowed nervously and hid his eyes in the bottleneck, “had a little myself-time, ya know. Walking thing. Alone.”

“Shooting bullymongs,” Maya hemmed.

“There’re lots of bullymongs on Pandora,” Axton replied with shrugging his shoulders, “so I hope I didn’t really ruin the ecosystem with shooting a few of them.”

“Surprised you know that kind of words, soldier”, Maya smirked.

“I’m a professional soldier, not a professional dumbass,” Axton said. Maya made a little gulp from her bottle and smiled.

“About ecosystem stuff you mentioned. I’ve heard that bullymongs are bandits feeders. They like tasting the mixture of booze and adrenaline in their blood. So… what I mean, you’re not so different. Maybe you should take care when walking alone. If it wasn’t something for easing that soul-heaviness of yours like Moxxi have noticed.”

“Nevermind,” Axton told, turning his head away. It was rather early for usual Moxxi’s frequenters to come so the bar was looking truly empty.

“So it’s true,” Maya concluded, “care to share?”

“I said — nevermind”, Axton replied, “this is kinda new, honey — that ya care ‘bout my mental health. It’s an International Comfort Day today or what?”

Maya shrugged. Her eyelook seemed a little offended.

“If you say so. Just kinda friend thing, ya know. One friend tells the story, another one nodding like he cares. Then the booze comes and everything turns alright. Easy pie.”

“These were that guys in Abbey who taught you this philosophy?” Axton sniffed.

“Maybe,” Maya slightly bowed her head, “So what?”

“Okay,” Axton sighed and twisted a ring on the neck with his dust-crusty fingers, “a whole year passed. The day when Sarah politely asked me to go the fuck away. Didn’t know I still pissed off. One man reminded me of the date today — unconsciously, of course”.

“Killed him?”

“Nah. That was a radio guy”, Axton put the bottle on the table with a tap, “always talking ‘bout dates and weather in mornings.”

“You still care?” Maya asked, and Axton eventually found out that she sounded… disappointedly?

“Dunno”, he replied, trying to choose the right words. For God’s sake, he wasn’t the one who started this topic. He would lie to himself saying that he doesn’t feel some… tension when sided with Maya. But they’re just compadres, he thought. She’s so pure and detached, he thought. No time for crushes, he thought. Nevertheless their chat became really awkward. She seems like being a bit of… jealous? So he did one more sip of beer and said: “She was a part of my past, ya know. I met her in training camp. She was hot and really badass. The strongest of us. Came to me during one of the festivities and asked if I wanna to dance. Of course, I said. So come on, she said. We ended fucking as a hell on some crates at the rear yard. The other day I’ve asked her, “You’ve been so brave asking me for a dance”, and she said, “Why ya call this bravery? It’s not. A simple stuff. The ugliest thing that may have happened is you denied. And that’s not a problem. I’d find someone else.” I want to marry this woman, I thought, and one day she eventually said yes. Can’t say we had lots of time to spend together, but it was kinda fun. And then she said she doesn't’ want to see me both as a soldier and as a husband. So a year passed. And shooting foolish primals soothes me. That’s the story.”

“Hm,” Maya hemmed, “That wasn’t hard, right? Okay. Now it’s time when I nod and tell ya that’s all right and going to be better blah blah blah when we kill Jack, of course.”

“One more thing that the Abbey teached you?” Axton smirked, “seems like you’ve been a good and catchy Abbey girl remembering all these polite manners. I like that kind.”

“Fuck the Abbey,” Maya replied disgustedly and rose from her chair, “I’ve got some things to accomplish. Hope ya won’t broke this one-handed-bandit into pieces after giving him the rest of your profit.”

“Hey,” Axton raised the glance to her face. She looked at him narrowly. “If ya know the Abbey girl that wants to share some stories for, kinda, easing her soul, tell her that I owe that girl a couple of ears. A friend thing, see. What did the Abbey said ‘bout gaining friends?”

“Abbey says there’re none”, Maya replied with a small grin, “but I will say that girl of course. Maybe she is eager to find some?”

When she was gone, Axton stayed at their table thoughtlessly staring at water drops on the scratched tabletop. Friends, she said. Probably a good start.


End file.
